“Black Coffee” – Peggy Lee

Album: Black Coffee

Artist: Peggy Lee

Year: 1953

Genre: Jazz, Traditional Pop

Grade: A

---

Originally released as a 10” LP in 1953, Peggy Lee’s masterful Black Coffee is a smooth, sultry affair. Terrifically sung and terrifically played. First off, the singing: Lee’s voice is both bluesy and airy, interpreting these jazz-pop standards with feathery delicacy and confident charisma. Her style is very versatile; a brilliant study in contrasts. The type of girl who makes black coffee, cigarettes and hangovers look sexy. Just listen to the opening title track: badass and classy.

Next, the music: backed by a talented quartet of swing veterans, Black Coffee is easily Lee’s jazziest album. Credit to producer Milt Gabler for putting together such a good, complementary band. Every arrangement, whether smoldering and swingin’ or tender and floating, is befitting of the subject matter, from the playful “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” to the yearning “Easy Leaving.” Every song, too, seems to end unresolved, adding an additional layer of intrigue to Lee’s provocative phrasings.

All in all, Black Coffee is one of the finest female vocal jazz albums of the 1950s, setting the blueprint for the likes of Julie London, Anita O’Day, Dusty Springfield and Joni Mitchell. Certainly Lee’s greatest musical work. A fantastic late-night record.

---